Disappearing bed.



e. w. TEASDALE.

DISAPPEARING BED. APPLIIIATION FILED FEB. 19. I911.

Patented Feb. 11, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

m: mums wnsns co mamumm. WASNINGYON. u c.

larented Feb. 11, 1919.

2 SHEETS SHEET 7 TE srn'rns ra n l GEORGE w. r nsnam,

on moms, MISSOURI.

DISAPPEARING BED.

Specification of "Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 11, 1919.

Application filed February 19,1917. S'rial1N0f149I540.

To all whom it may concern.-

tains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to beds of the socalled disappearing type that are now used I extensively in apartment houses and other dwellings in which the floorspace is limited. One type of disappearing bed that is now in more or less general use in constructed in such a manner that it 'can be turned into a vertical position and swung into a closet adjoining the room in which the bed is used when it is desired to conceal the bed-or arrange it in its inoperative position. Such a bed takes up considerable floorspace in the closet, thus making it necessary to build the-closet much larger than is actually neces sary for the purpose of storing clothes in the closet; it necessitates the use of clam-ping devices to clamp the bedding and the mattress to the bed spring, so as to prevent them from becoming displaced when the bed is arranged in a verticalorupright position; it is cumbersome and considerably lower than an ordinary bed when it is arranged in operative position, and it *is costly to manufacture and install, on account of its complicated design. 7

One object of my invention is to provide a disappearing bed which is so constructed that it occupies a horizontal position when not in use, and also when it is being moved into and out of operative position, thus'overcoming the necessity of using clamping devices for securing the bedding and the mattress to the bed spring.

Another object is to provide a disappearing bed that takes up no 'floor space when not in use.

Another object is to provide'a disappearing bed that presents the same appearance as an ordinary stationary bed when in use; that has standard height legs and in which the operating mechanism is completely concealed from view, both when thebed is in use and not in use.

Another object'is to provide a disappear ing bed thatcan be moved easily into and out ofthe compartment in which it is housed whenno't in use, and which is so constructed "that it can be arranged "in a convenient position during the operation of making up the bed.

And still another object of my invention "is to 'provide'a means by which an ordinary Stationary bed can be easily converted into a disap earing bed. Other objects and desir'able features of my invention will be hereinafter pointed out.

To this end I have devised a disappearing bed that comprises a bed which is preferably of "the same size and design as an ordinary stationary bed, and mechanism for bodily liitin said bed into and out of a compartmen't "located above the floor of the room in which the bed is used and connected with said room by an opening in one of the side walls of the room. The compartment in which the bed is housed when it is not in use may be formed by the space in the upper portion of a single or double closet or by the space above an adjacent room whose ceiling is lower than the ceiling of the room in which the bed is used, andvarious means can be used f'or moving the bed into and out of said compartment. The means that I prefer to use, however, consists of a counterweight- ;edlever pivot-ally arranged in a verticalslot compartment.

Figure 10f the drawings is a view, partly in vertical section and partly in elevation, illustrating a disappearing bed constructed in accordance with my invention, showing the bed in operative position.

Fig. 2 is a similar view, showing the bed in its inoperative position.

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view, taken on the line 3 3 of Fig.1.

Fig. 4 is a view, taken on the line H of Fig. l, showingthe sidewall of the room in elevation; and

Fig. '5 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view, taken on theline5 -5 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, Which illustrate the referred form of my invention, A designates a bed, B designates the room in which the bed is arranged when it is in use,

and C designates a compartment arranged outside of said room and located in a higher horizontal plane than the floor of the room, said compartment C being connected with the room A by an opening in the side wall 1 of. the room that is normally closed by a transom or hinged closure 2. The compartment C may either be located above a single or .1 room B.

double closet D, or above an adjacent room whose cellmg is lower than the ceihng of the In the form of my lnvention herem shown the compartment C is located above a double closet that is provided with aparv tition 3 in which a slot or pocket tis formed to receive the mechanism that moves the bed into and out of the compartment C, the front end of said slot communicating with a vertically-disposed slot 5 inthe side wall 1 of.

the room B. It is immaterial, so far as my broad idea is concerned, what means is used for moving the bed into and out of the compartment (J, but one efiicient means thatmaybe used for this purpose consists of alever E arranged in the pocket in the partition 3 in the double closet D and rigidly connected to a horizontally-(lisposed shaft 6 that is journaled in said partition, as shown in Fig. 3, the lever E occupying the position shown in Fig. 1 when the bed is in use and the posltlon shown 1n Flg. 2 when the 1 bed is housed in the compartment C. The

lever E is provided at its lower end with a forwardly-projecting arm 7 that is pivotally connected at 7 to a transversely-disposed frame F arranged at the center of the bed.

below the bed spring, thus forming a substantially elbow-shaped lever whose arm 7 projects forwardly from-the wall 1 when the bed is in use and which projects in the opposite direction from said wall, or, in other words, into the compartment C, when the bed is not in use, as shown in Fig. 2.

Any suitable mechanism may be used for operating the lever E, the mechanism herein shown consisting of a'c-r'ank arm Sconnected with a pinion 9 that meshes with a gear 10, which, in turn, is secured to the shaft 6 to which the lever E is rigidly connected, the rotation of the pinion. 9 causing. the lever E to turn on its axis. Means is.

provided for holding the bed A in a horizontal position while it is being moved into and out of the compartment C, which means preferably consists of an elbow-shaped lever G whose long arm is pivotally connected at 11 to the partition 3, and whose short arm.

is pivotally connected at 12 to the frame F C. If desired, the shaft to which the crank arm 8 and the pinion 9 are connected can be provided with a ratchet wheel 16 with which a ratchet 17 cooperates, so as to hold the lever E in a partially raised position, in case it is desired to have the bed raised slightly from the floor during the operation of making up the bed. The slot 5 in the side wall 7 l of the room 13 is closed when the bed is in use by means of a flange 18 on one edge of the lever E that completely closes the upper portion of said slot and one-half of the lower portion of the slot, the remaining half of the lower portion of the slot being closed by a flange 19 on the lever G, as shown in Fig. 1. When the bed is not in use, or, in other words, arranged in the compartment C, the slot 5 is completely closed by a flange 20 on the other vertical edge of the lever E, said lever being preferably of the cross-sectional shape shown in Fig. 5. The lever E is preferably provided with a counterweight 21 arranged on same in such a position that very little power is required to swing the lever from the position shown in Fig. 1 to the position shown in Fig. 2, but said weight is so arranged that there is no liability of the bed A moving upwardly accidentally, when it is arranged in operative position, even though the mattress and all of the bed clothes are removed from the bed.

The transom or hinged closure 2 of the compartment C is preferably operatively connected with the bed operating mechanism in such a manner that it will swing upwardly into the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1 while. the bed A is traveling upwardly, and then back to its normal position to close the compartment C after the bed has entered said compartment. In'the form of my invention herein shown this is effected by means of an arm 22 located adjacent the hinged upper edge of the transom and connected by means'of a link 23 with an arm 24 on one end of a horizontallydisposed rock shaft 25. that is mounted in bearings on the floor of the compartment C,

said rock shaft 25 being provided .atits opposite end with an arm 25 which is'connected -by means of a rod 26 with a cam on y the gear 10 that causes the arm 24 to swing downwardly and then back to its normal position when the lever E is turned from the position shown in Fig.1into the position shown in Fig. 2. The cam that I prefer to use is formed by a cam-shaped slot 27 in the gear 10 that receives a pin or roller 28 on the lower end of the rod 26, which cam slot is so shaped that the transom-2 will remain at rest during that period in the cycle of operations of the bed-operating mechanism when the bed is -.entering the compartment C. The frame F on the bed to which the levers E and G are connected is preferably provided at its ends with portions F that are bolted -OI";CO11-Il60tGd in any other suitable manner :to the side rails of the bed, but it is of course immaterial, so far as my broad idea is concerned, how the bed and bed-operating mechanism are connected together.

A disappearing bed of the construction above described takes'up floorspace when it is not in use, owing to the fact that it is housed in a compartment C formed by the Wastespace in a closet or by thespace above a low-ceilinged room. Furthermore, such a bed requires no clamping devices to hold the bedding and the mattress on the bed spring, owing to the fact that the bed occupies a horizontal position when it is not in use and also when it is being moved into and out of the compartment C in which it is housed during the day. When the bed is in use it presents the. same-appearance as an ordinary stationary bed, as the bed-operating mechanism is completely concealed from view and the transom 2 remains in its closed position at such times. The bed-opdimensions of the bed are preferably the same as those of an ordinary stationary bed.

in fact, my invention makes it possible to convert an ordinary bed into a disappearing bed, by simply combining an ordinary bed with a bed-operating mechanism of the kind herein shown and locking the side rails and end pieces of the bed together in such a manner that they will not become detached when the bed is raised from the floor by said operating mechanism.

Having thus'descri'bed my invention, what I claim, and 'desire to secure by Letters Patent, is: r

1. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed, and an operating mechanism for said bed comprising a portion that projects through a vertical slot in one wall of the room in which the bed is used when the bed is arranged in operative position in said *room, said mechanism being so constructed that it can be operated to movelsaid bed into and out of an elevated compartment located outside of said room.

2. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed, a vertically-disposed lever arranged in a slot or pocket that communicates with the shap'ed levers arranged "so that when they are moved in one direction they will raise the bed and move it into an elevated compartment and when moved in the opposite direction will withdraw the bed from said compartment and lower it to the floor of a room.

4. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed,

an operating mechanism for said bed comprising a vertically-disposed member oscillati-ngly mounted in a pocket that communicates with a slot formed in one wall of the room in which the bed is used and provided with a portion that is pivotally connected to said bed, and means for turning said member on its axis so as to IIIIOVB the bed into and out of a compartment located above said member.

5. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed, an elevated compartment arranged outside of the room in which the bed is used and commun cating with said room "through an opening in one of the side walls of same and an perating mechanism arranged beneath the elevated compartment and connected to the bed for moving the bed into and out of said compartment, said mechanism being concealed from view except when "moving 'thebed.

6. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed,

a compartment for housing the bed when it is not 111 use located above a closet or 'low-ceilinged room adjacent the room in which the bed is used, a closure for said compartment that forms part of a wall of the room in which the bed is used, and an operating mechanism for said bed and closure'constructed in such manner that the closure will open and close automatically when the bed is being moved upwardly into said compartment by said mechanism.

7 A disappearing bed, comprising 'a bed, a vertically-disposed lever arranged in such a position that it lies at oneside of the bed when the bed is inuse and provided with a forwardly-projecting portion that extends underneath the bed, means for turning said lever "so as to raise-the bed and deposit it in a compartment located above said lever,

' and means for preventing the bed from turning out of a horizontal position when it v the mechanism is used.

is being moved by said lever.

8. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed, a pair of substantially vertically-disposed levers pivotally connected to a supporting structure located outside of the room in which the bed is used and provided-with angularly-disposed extensions that proj eot into said room through a slot in one of the side walls of same, said extensions being pivotally connected to the bed, and an elevated compartment located outside of the room in which the bed is used and into which the bed can be moved by turning said levers.

9. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed, an elevated compartment in which the bed is housed when it is not in use, said compartment being located outside of the room in which the bed is used, and a pivotally mounted operating mechanism for said bed, which, when rocked in one direction, withdraws the bed from said compartment and deposits it on the floor of said room.

- levers on said supporting structure pivotally connected to said bed and adapted to be swung downwardly through a slot in one of the side walls of said room so as to withdraw the bed from said compartment and H deposit it on the floor of the room.

11. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed, an elevated compartment arranged outside of the room in which the bed is used, a

closure for said compartment, means for raising the bed from the floor of the room and depositing it in said compartment, and means for causing said closureto open and close automatically during the operation of moving the bed from the room into said compartment.

beneath said compartment, an arm on said lever that is pivotally connected to said bed, said lever being adapted to be turned so as to move the bed upwardly and deposit it in said compartment, and a slot in the side wall of the room through which said lever travels when it is moving the bed into and out of said compartment.

1 3. A bed-operating mechanism for the purpose described, comprising a vertically disposed member oscilla'tingly mounted on a supporting structure and adapted to operate in a vertical slot formed in the side wall of a room, and an angularly-disposed por tion on said member that is adapted to be pivotally connected to the bed with which 14. A bed-operating mechanism for the purpose described, comprising two substantially elbow-shaped levers pivotally connected to a supporting structure and adapted to operate in'a vertical slot formed in the side wall of a room, the short arms of said levers being adapted to be pivotally connected to a bed.

ing a vertically-disposed, counterweighted member pivotally mounted intermediate its ends on a supporting structure and provided on one end with an angularly-disposed arm, a substantially elbow-shaped lever pivotally mounted on said supporting structure, and a mechanism for causing said member and lever to move in unison.

17. A bed-operating mechanism, comprising a vertically-disposed member oscillatingly mounted on a supporting structure adjacent a vertical slot in the side wall of a room and provided at one end with a portion that is adapted to be pivotally connected to a bed, and means on said member thatforms a closure for said slot.

18. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed,

a transversely-(lisposed frame arranged underneath the spring of said bed, and an operating mechanism for said bed com-prising two substantially elbow-shaped levers oscillatingly mounted on a stationary supporting structure and pivotally connected to said frame.

19. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed,

slot when the bed is in use and when it is arranged in said compartment.

20. A disappearing bed, comprising a bed, an elevated compartment arranged outside of the roomin which the bed is used, a pair operating ina vertical. slot in the side wall of the room for raising and lowering the bed" into and out of said compartment, means on said levers that forms a closure {or said slot when the-bed is in use and'when it is of levers pivotally connected to said bed and a arranged in said compartment, a transom or closure for said compartment, a cam that turns when said levers move, and an operating mechanism for said transom actuated I by said cam.

Y when the bed is in use, an operating crank,

a counterweighted lever pivotally mounted on a supporting structure located outside of the room in which the bed is used and provided with a portion that projects through a vertical slot in the side wall of the room when the bed is in use, an operating crank, a gear and pinion for transmitting movement from said crank to said lever, a looking mechanism for enabling said lever to be locked so as to hold the bed in a slightly elevated position, an elbow-shaped lever pivot-ally connected to said bed for preventing it from moving out of horizontal position when it is being raised or lowered by said lever, and means for causing both of said levers to move in unison.

GEORGE W. TEASDALE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Eotente,

Washington, D. 0." a 

